Ben Willbond
English actor and screenwriter (born 1973) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
English actor and screenwriter (born 1973) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Benjamin Thomas Willbond (born 18 January 1973)[1] is an English actor and screenwriter best known as a member of the British Them There collective, for which he has written and starred in productions including Horrible Histories, Yonderland, and Ghosts.
| Ben Willbond | |
|---|---|
Willbond in 2023 | |
| Birth name | Benjamin Thomas Willbond |
| Born | 18 January 1973[1] Bedfordshire, England |
| Medium | Television, radio, film |
| Nationality | English |
| Alma mater | St Catherine's College, Oxford |
| Years active | 1995–present |
| Genres | Satire |
| Spouse | Charlotte Gordon |
| Children | 2 |
| Notable works and roles | Horrible Histories, The Thick of It, Rev., Ghosts, We Are Not Alone |
| Website | benwillbond |
Along with fellow Them There member Laurence Rickard, he co-wrote the 2022 feature length television comedy We Are Not Alone.
Willbond was a forces child and consequently his family moved around every two years. He was sent to board at Stamford School in Lincolnshire, when he was nine years old. He was bullied whilst attending the school.[2] Willbond when talking about his experience at the school said "I don't actually remember that time because it was so shocking".[3] He studied Russian and French at St Catherine's College, Oxford.
Along with Arnold Widdowson, Willbond was part of the comedy duo "Ben & Arn", who won Perrier Award for "Best Newcomer" in 1999,[4] and formed the self-proclaimed "thinking man's French pop duo"[5] Priorité à Gauche.[6] He then went on to perform his solo character shows at several Edinburgh Fringe Festivals, the last being in 2005 which also starred Katy Brand and Jim Field Smith.[6][7]
He is perhaps best known for his regular role in CBBC's Horrible Histories, in which he played a wide variety of historical figures, most memorably recurring roles as Henry VIII and Alexander the Great. Along with the five other members of the Horrible Histories starring cast, Willbond is also the co-creator, -writer and -star of Yonderland, a family fantasy comedy series that premiered on Sky One on 10 November 2013.[8] In addition he is the co-writer of Bill, a BBC-produced comedy film based loosely around the early life of William Shakespeare, which involved the same starring troupe.[9]
Previously, Willbond had starred in a short-lived sketch show for ITV2 called Laura, Ben & Him[4] with Marek Larwood and sometime writing partner Laura Solon. He also appeared in Solon's BBC Radio 4 sketch show, Laura Solon: Talking and Not Talking. Other notable television work includes the recurring roles of Steve Warwick in the BBC comedy Rev,[10] Adam Kenyon in BBC Four's The Thick of It[4] and as a television director in the movie-length final episode of the Ricky Gervais comedy Extras (BBC Two).[4] He has also appeared in Katy Brand's Big Ass Show[4] for ITV2 and Mayo[11] for BBC One.
Willbond's other radio credits include BBC Radio 4 series Deep Trouble, Double Science (co-written with Justin Edwards), Recorded for Training Purposes and the first series of Electric Ink. He also starred in the YouTube romantic comedy "Nigel and Victoria."
His 2010 short film Tooty's Wedding, which he co-wrote with Solon, won numerous international comedy awards and was screened as part of the 2012 Sundance Film Festival.[12] Other notable film work includes the movie Starter for 10 (2006).[13] In 2007 he had a short appearance in St Trinian's,[11] as a nervous school inspector.
Between 2019–2023, Willbond portrayed The Captain in the BBC sitcom Ghosts with the other main Horrible Histories cast.
Willbond has two children and is married to Charlotte Gordon. He is a keen cricketer and plays for the Thunderers.[14]
| Year | Project | Award | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Tooty's Wedding | Best Comedy Short | Rhode Island International Film Festival | |
| 2011 | Tooty's Wedding | Best Foreign Short & Best Direction (Short) | LA Comedy Festival | |
| 2011 | Tooty's Wedding | Jury Prize Best Short Film | Friars Club Comedy Film Festival | |
| 2011 | Tooty's Wedding | Best Comedy | Aesthetica Short Film Festival | |
| 2011 | Tooty's Wedding | Award of Merit | Accolade Competition | |
| 2011 | Horrible Histories | Best Acting | Kidscreen Awards | Entire cast |
| 2012 | Horrible Histories | Best Acting | Kidscreen Awards | Entire cast |
| Year | Project | Role | Notes and references |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Ben & Arn's Big Top | Ben | Edinburgh Fringe Festival performance[4] |
| The Now Show | BBC Radio 4[11] | ||
| 2001 | Le Hip Parade | François | Play UK television series[15] |
| 2004–07 | Deep Trouble | Writer / performer ('Lieutenant Jack Trainor') | BBC Radio 4[16] |
| 2005 | Mayo | Simon Johnston | BBC One[17] |
| The Gigolos | Ben | Film | |
| Imagine Me & You | David | Film | |
| The Catherine Tate Show | Gym Trainer | BBC Two[18] | |
| 2006 | Starter for 10 | Julian | Film[11] |
| My Hero | Dexter | BBC One[19] | |
| 2006–08 | Recorded for Training Purposes | Writer / performer | BBC Radio 4[11][20] |
| 2007 | St Trinian's | Alistair | Film[11] |
| 2007, 2008 | Double Science | Doctor Colin Jackson | BBC Radio 4 |
| 2007, 2012 | The Thick of It | Adam Kenyon | BBC Two[21] |
| 2008 | Exit Strategy | Husband | Short film[22] |
| Lead Balloon | Jamie | BBC Two[23] | |
| Laura, Ben & Him | Writer, performer, co-creator | ITV 2[11] | |
| 2009–13 | Horrible Histories | Principal sketch performer | CBBC[11] |
| 2010–11 | Rev. | Stephen Warwick | BBC Two[11] |
| 2011 | Tooty's Wedding | Peter | Film short |
| 2013–16 | Yonderland | Various | |
| 2014 | Inside No. 9 | Jeremy | Episode: "Sardines" |
| 2015 | Bill | Various | Film |
| Acoustic Kitty | Agent Cooper | Film short[24] | |
| Shush! | Simon | BBC Radio 4 | |
| 2016 | Power Monkeys | Oleg | Channel 4. Utilises Russian degree. |
| Bridget Jones's Baby | Giles | Film | |
| 2017 | Playing House | Dr. Clive Ericson | 5 episodes |
| Quacks | Patrice Dupont | 1 episode | |
| Danger Mouse | Ham Hands | 2 episodes | |
| Tracey Breaks the News | Emmanuel Macron, Various | BBC One | |
| 2018 | Damned | Marcus Bowles | |
| 2018–2023 | There She Goes | Chris | Main role; 2 series and 2023 special |
| 2019 | Good Omens | Nigel Tomkins | 1 episode |
| Sequins | Alan Bigsby | Film short | |
| 2019–2023 | Ghosts | The Captain | Main role; BBC One |
| 2021 | Alma's Not Normal | Phil | Series 1, episode 3 |
| 2022 | We Are Not Alone | Darrenth | Film |
| 2023 | A Kind of Spark | Adam Quinn | Main role[25] |
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